March 13, 2020

320 years ago
1700

Born on this date
Michel Blavet. French musician and composer. Mr. Blavet was a flute and bassoon virtuoso, who composed mainly for flute. His surviving works include a concerto and three books of sonatas. Mr. Blavet died on October 28, 1768 at the age of 68.

300 years ago
1720

Born on this date
Charles Bonnet. Genevan naturalist. Mr. Bonnet, a lifelong resident of the Republic of Geneva, was a lawyer by profession, but was mainly interested in the study of nature. He coined the term phyllotaxis to describe the arrangement of leaves on a plant. When his eyesight began to fail, Mr. Bonnet increasingly turned to philosophy and is regarded as a pre-evolutionary thinker, postulating that the universe was created by an act of divine will and then operates on its own, and that man and all other forms of existence have an inherent power of self-development and are destined to pass into a higher stage. Mr. Bonnet died after a long illness on May 20, 1793 at the age of 73.

220 years ago
1800

Born on this date
Mustafa Reşid Pasha. Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire, 1846-1848, 1848-1852, March-August 1852, 1854-1855, 1856-1857, 1857-1858. Mustafa Reşid Pasha served six terms as Grand Vizier under Sultan Abdulmejid I, and was chiefly responsible for the program of Ottoman government reforms known as Tanzimat. From 1834-1845, he served three terms as Ottoman Ambassador to France and two terms as Ambassador to the United Kingdom. Mustafa Reşid Pasha was in office as Grand Vizier when he died of a heart attack on January 7, 1858 at the age of 57.

Died on this date
Nana Fadnavis, 58. Indian politician. Mr. Fadnavis, born Balaji Janardan Bhanu, was a minister of the Maratha Empire during the Peshwa administration in Pune from 1761 until his death, and was known for his administrative, diplomatic, military, and financial skills.

175 years ago
1845

Music
Felix Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto received its première performance in Leipzig, with Ferdinand David as soloist.

160 years ago
1860

Born on this date
Hugo Wolf. Austrian composer. Mr. Wolf was best known for his lieder (art songs), but he also wrote three operas and several instrumental works. He was active from the late 1870s through the late 1890s, but his career was frequently interrupted by depression, and ended by syphilis. Mr. Wolf went insane and spent his last years in an asylum, dying on February 22, 1903, 19 days before his 43rd birthday.

150 years ago
1870

Born on this date
Martin Dies, Sr. U.S. politician. Mr. Dies, a Democrat, represented Texas' 2nd District in the U.S. House of Representatives (1909-1919), and died on July 13, 1922 at the age of 52. His son Martin, Jr. later represented the same congressional district.

William Glackens. U.S. artist. Mr. Glackens was a realist painter and one of the founders of the Ashcan School, known for his paintings of street scenes and depictions of daily life in New York City and Paris. He also worked as an illustrator for newspapers and magazines in Philadelphia and New York City. Mr. Glackens died on May 22, 1938 at the age of 68.

140 years ago
1880

Born on this date
Lancelot de Mole, 70. Australian engineer. Mr. de Mole submitted an early idea for the tank to the British War Office in 1912, but his idea was rejected. A Royal Commission in 1919 recognized Mr. de Mole's design, and awarded him a small payment to cover his expenses; he was also honoured by being made an honourary corporal, and was appointed a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE).

130 years ago
1890

Born on this date
Fritz Busch. German conductor. Mr. Busch conducted several operas and orchestras in a career spanning more than 40 years, including the Dresden State Opera (1922-1933). He was dismissed from his post in Dresden by the Nazis shortly after they took power, and served as musical director of the Glyndebourne Festival Opera in England (1934-1939). Mr. Busch worked in the United States, Argentina, and other countries for most of the 1940s, returning to his previous post with Glyndebourne in 1950. He died in London on September 14, 1951 at the age of 61.

120 years ago
1900

Born on this date
Giorgos Seferis. Greek poet and diplomat. Mr. Seferis, whose real name was Georgios Seferiades, became one of Greece's most important poets while working as a career diplomat in the Greek foreign service. He was Greece's Ambassador to the United Kingdom from 1957-1962. Mr. Giorgios was awarded the 1963 Nobel Prize in Literature "for his eminent lyrical writing, inspired by a deep feeling for the Hellenic world of culture." He died of pneumonia on September 20, 1971 at the age of 71.

War
British forces occupied Bloemfontein, Orange Free State, during the Second Boer War.

110 years ago
1910

Born on this date
Kemal Tahir. Turkish writer. Mr. Tahir was a Marxist novelist and journalist who wrote some of his most important novels while being imprisoned from 1938-1950 and 1955-1956 for "spreading sedition" among the armed forces. He worked as Istanbul correspondent for The Izmir Commerce in the 1950s. Mr. Tahir died of a heart attack during a heated debate in Istanbul on April 21, 1973 at the age of 63.

Sammy Kaye. U.S. bandleader. Mr. Kaye, known for his tag line "Swing and Sway with Sammy Kaye," was one of the most popular figures of the Big Band era. His most famous recording was probably Remember Pearl Harbor (1942). Mr. Kaye died on June 2, 1987 at the age of 77.

100 years ago
1920

World events
In what became known as the Kapp Putsch (or the Kapp-Lutwitz Putsch), General Walther von Luttwitz ordered the Marinebrigade Ehrhardt--which had been ordered disbanded by government authorities--to march on Berlin in an attempt to overthrow Germany's Weimar Republic. The capital was occupied, but the putsch collapsed when the government called for a general strike. The lack of support for the putsch from organized labour helped to doom the putsch to failure. The putsch's civilian leader was 62-year-old East Prussian civil servant Wolfgang Kapp.

90 years ago
1930

Space
The discovery of Pluto on February 18 by astronomer Clyde Tombaugh was announced by Lowell Observatory.

80 years ago
1940

War
Finnish Foreign Minister Vaino Tanner charged that his country had lost the Winter War against the U.S.S.R. because no outside nation was willing to help Finland. U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued a statement praising Finnish valour.

Politics and government
Joseph Burns McNair succeeded fellow Liberal A.A. Dysart as Premier of New Brunswick.

A Gallup Poll indicated that American voters were opposed to a third term as President of the United States for Franklin D. Roosevelt by a margin of 53%-47%.

U.S. Senator Robert Taft (Ohio) announced that he would be a candidate in the Ohio primary for the 1940 Republican Party nomination for President of the United States.

Society
The United States Senate Judiciary Committee passed and sent to the floor the House of Representatives-approved Gavagan anti-lynching bill.

Journalism
The United Kingdom announced the suspension of three Hebrew-language newspapers in Palestine for violation of censorship guidelines.

Economics and finance
U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt expressed his opposition to further funds for flood control navigation and power projects, contending that existing funds were committed for three years.

75 years ago
1945

War
The American bridgehead in Germany on the eastern side of the Rhine River opposite Remagen was extended to points 5 miles beyond the river. U.S. forces in the Philippines on Mindanao Island pushed on from Zamboanga to capture the villages of Santa Maria, Canelar, Sinung, and Pitogo.

Politics and government
General Eurico Dutra was nominated to run against Major General Eduardo Gomes for President of Brazil.

Economics and finance
The U.S. House of Representatives voted to extend the life of the Lend-Lease Act until June 30, 1946, but directed that it not be used for postwar reconstruction.

70 years ago
1950

On television tonight
Lights Out, on NBC
Tonight's episode: The Emerald Lavalier, starring Madeline Clive and Edwin Cooper

Television
The National Broadcasting Company barred leftist singer Paul Robeson from appearing on former U.S. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt's program.

World events
The Indian Parliament authorized the deportation of 500,000 Muslims who had infiltrated Assam from East Bengal during the past two years.

Politics and government
The U.S. administration of U.S. President Harry Truman sent Congress 21 plans for reorganization of Executive departments and agencies, including the National Labor Relations Board and Maritime Commission, as proposed by the Hoover Commission.

Economics and finance
The United Kingdom promised to participate in any European economic union, after U.S. Economic Cooperation Administrator Paul Hoffman threatened to deprive Britain of $150 million in aid if it continued to remain aloof from unification efforts.

Business
General Motors reported net profits for 1949 of $656 million, the highest ever recorded by a U.S. corporation.

60 years ago
1960

Football
NFL
National Football League owners approved the move of the Chicago Cardinals to St. Louis.

50 years ago
1970

Hit parade
#1 single in New Zealand (RIANZ): Nature--The Fourmyula (4th week at #1)

#1 single in Ireland (IRMA): Once Upon a Time in the West--Various Artists (2nd week at #1)

South Africa's Top 10 (Springbok Radio)
1 Venus--Shocking Blue (2nd week at #1)
2 Pretty Belinda--Chris Andrews
3 Holly Holy--Neil Diamond
4 Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)--Edison Lighthouse
5 Reflections of My Life--The Marmalade
6 Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head--B.J. Thomas
7 All I Have to Do is Dream--Bobbie Gentry and Glen Campbell
8 Someday We'll Be Together--Diana Ross and the Supremes
9 Whole Lotta Love--Led Zeppelin
10 Love is a Beautiful Song--Dave Mills

The only single entering the chart was Arizona by Mark Lindsay (#18).

Vancouver's Top 10 (CKLG)
1 Spirit in the Sky--Norman Greenbaum
2 Bridge Over Troubled Water--Simon & Garfunkel
3 Ma Belle Amie--The Tee Set
4 I Must Have Been Blind--The Collectors
5 Kentucky Rain--Elvis Presley
6 Come and Get It--Badfinger
7 Rainy Night in Georgia--Brook Benton
8 The Rapper--The Jaggerz
9 Down in the Alley--Ronnie Hawkins
10 Instant Karma (We All Shine On)--John Ono Lennon (with the Plastic Ono Band)

Singles entering the chart were Let it Be by the Beatles (#23); Temma Harbour by Mary Hopkin (#27); American Woman/No Sugar Tonight by the Guess Who (#29); and Something's Burning by Kenny Rogers and the First Edition (#30).

Edmonton's Top 10 (CJCA)
1 Instant Karma (We All Shine On)--John Ono Lennon (with the Plastic Ono Band)
2 Bridge Over Troubled Water--Simon & Garfunkel
3 Ma Belle Amie--The Tee Set
4 Something's Burning--Kenny Rogers and the First Edition
5 The Rainmaker--Tom Northcott
6 Who'll Stop the Rain/Travelin' Band--Creedence Clearwater Revival
7 I Must Have Been Blind--The Collectors
8 The Rapper--The Jaggerz
9 Come and Get It--Badfinger
10 No Time--The Guess Who

Religion
A concrete merger proposal to unite within the decade 25 million members of nine Protestant denominations into a single church was sent by the Consultation on Church Union to the denominations. The proposal was to receive two years of detailed study and probably extensive amendment by laymen and clergy at all levels.

Abominations
The U.S. Senate voted 64-17 to lower the voting age to 18 for federal, state, and local elections.

Politics and government
In a by-election in the riding of Bridgewater, Conservative Party candidate Tom King won by 10,915 votes, the largest majority in the riding in 50 years. It was the first British election since the voting age had been lowered from 21 to 18 years in January.

40 years ago
1980

Hit parade
#1 single in Ireland (Hot Press): Coward of the County--Kenny Rogers (3rd week at #1)

Crime
The day after being found guilty of 33 counts of murder, John Wayne Gacy was sentenced to die in Illinois’ electric chair.

In the first criminal prosecution of an American corporation in a case involving alleged product defects that led to a death, Ford Motor Corporation was found not guilty on three charges of reckless homicide. Only monetary penalties would have been levelled if the verdict had been guilty. The case involved the deaths of three young women whose 1973 Pinto burst into flames after it was struck from the rear by a van near Winnemac, Indiana in August 1978. The prosecution charged that Ford officials knew that the Pinto’s gasoline tanks tended to explode when struck from behind and that they did nothing to correct the defect after manufacture. Ford denied the charges, and said that the car was as safe as its competitors. Pulaski County Circuit Judge Harold Staffeldt had restricted the scope of the trial, allowing the state to show to the jury only about 24 of the more than 220 documents it wanted to introduce. Due to the national controversy over the safety of the fuel tank in rear-end collisions, Ford had voluntarily recalled 1.9 million Pintos in June 1978 to improve the safety of the tanks.

30 years ago
1990

On television tonight
The Wonder Years, on ABC
Tonight's episode: Night Out

Died on this date
Bruno Bettelheim, 86. Austro-Hungarian-born U.S. psychologist. Dr. Bettelheim was a psychonalytical psychologist who was known for his work with children. His doctorate was in art history, and he took only three introductory courses in psychology--facts which weren't known to most people during his lifetime. After the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938, Dr. Bettelheim was interned at Dachau and Buchenwald, regaining his freedom as a result of an amnesty in 1939; he fled to the United States, gaining U.S. citizenship in 1944. Dr. Bettelheim taught at the University of Chicago from 1944-1973; he served as director of University of Chicago's Sonia Shankman Orthogenic School, a home that treats emotionally disturbed children. His theories that autism spectrum disorder is related to poor parenting are currently out of fashion, and accusations that he engaged in abusive behaviour toward children and his students surfaced after his death. Dr. Bettelehim suffered from depression for years, and finally committed suicide by self-asphyxiation.

Politics and government
The Soviet Congress of People’s Deputies voted 1,771-24 with 74 abstentions to repeal article 6 of the Soviet constitution that gave the Communist Party a political monopoly. The change had been included in a platform approved by the party’s Central Committee in February. President Mikhail Gorbachev, who had pressed for the change, also won the approval of the deputies for a more powerful presidency with broad executive authority. He believed that a strong president could rise above partisan politics in the new multiparty system, but many deputies feared that his plan would lead to a dictatorship.

Military leader Hérard Abraham relinquished the presidency of Haiti to Jean Rénald Clérismé, three days after becoming acting President when President Prosper Avril was forced into exile because of street protests after a reign of 18 months.

World events
U.S.S.R. President Mikhail Gorbachev called Lithuania’s declaration of independence two days earlier "illegitimate and invalid." Which is to say, Mr. Gorbachev would not approve of any independence movement that he couldn’t control.

Economics and finance
U.S. President George Bush lifted economic sanctions against Nicaragua and asked the U.S. Congress for $300 million in economic aid.

25 years ago
1995

Hit parade
#1 single in Italy: Believe--Elton John

#1 single in Spain (PROMUSICAE): Zombie--Ororo (9th week at #1)

#1 single in Germany (Media Control): Conquest of Paradise--Vangelis (5th week at #1)

Canada's Top 10 (RPM)
1 Take a Bow--Madonna (2nd week at #1)
2 Strong Enough--Sheryl Crow
3 She's a River--Simple Minds
4 Mishale--Andru Donalds
5 Bang and Blame--R.E.M.
6 The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead--Crash Test Dummies
7 When I Come Around--Green Day
8 Sukiyaki--4 P.M.
9 Buddy Holly--Weezer
10 I Know--Dionne Farris

Singles entering the chart were I Got a Line on You by the Jeff Healey Band (#78); Mea Culpa by Mike + the Mechanics (#80); Stay by Colin James (#87); Machine Punch Through by Mole (#91); Baby by Brandy (#94); and End of the World by the Waltons (#95).

Died on this date
Odette Sansom, 82. French-born U.K. spy. Mrs. Sansom, born Odette Brailly, married Englishman Roy Sansom in 1931 and moved to England. She joined the Special Operations Executive (SOE) in 1942, and served there with SOE's Spindle network, under the supervison of future husband Peter Churchill, from November 1942-April 1943, acting as a courier. Mrs. Sansom was captured and spent the rest of the war in Ravensbrück Concentration Camp, surviving torture, attempted starvation, and solitary confinement. She became the first woman to be awarded the George Cross "for acts of the greatest heroism or for most conspicuous courage in circumstance of extreme danger," and testified against Nazi prison guards accused of war crimes in the Hamburg Ravensbrück Trials in 1946. Mrs. Sansom divorced her husband and married Mr. Churchill in 1947; they were divorced in 1956, and she then married another former SOE agent, Geoffrey Hallowes. She was the subject of the biographical British movie Odette (1950).

Leon Day, 78. U.S. baseball pitcher. Mr. Day played in the Negro Leagues with the Baltimore Black Sox (1934); Brooklyn and Newark Eagles (1935-1939, 1941-1943); Philadelphia Stars (1946); and Baltimore Elite Giants (1949-1950). He also played in the Mexican League with Veracruz (1940) and the Mexico City Reds (1947-1948). Mr. Day posted a 13-0 record with the Newark Eagles in 1937, and pitched a no-hitter for the Stars on the opening day of the 1946 season, after serving with the United States Army for two years in World War II. He finished his career with the Edmonton Eskimos of the Class A Western International League in 1953, posting a 5-5 record. Mr. Day died of a heart attack, six days after learning he had been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

20 years ago
2000

Business
The Tribune Company, publisher of the Chicago Tribune, announced that it would buy the Times Mirror Company, publisher of the Los Angeles Times, Baltimore Sun, and Newsday. Times Mirror had been in the Chandler family for more than a century. The $8-billion transaction would leave Los Angeles without a locally-owned daily newspaper. The new company would embrace 11 daily newspapers, 22 television stations, 4 radio stations, and many magazines, including Field & Stream, Popular Science, and The Sporting News.

U.S. President Bill Clinton announced that oil contracts were still banned with Iran despite the victory of moderates in Iran’s parliamentary elections in February.

Football
NFL
Dan Marino announced his retirement after 17 years as quarterback for the Miami Dolphins.

10 years ago
2010

Died on this date
Jean Ferrat, 79. French musician. Mr. Ferrat, born Jean Tenenbaum, was a singer-songwriter and poet, whose career spanned half a century from the late 1950s through 2009. His best-known song was Nuit et brouillard (Night and Fog) (1963). Mr. Ferrat died after a long illness.